Syracuse, N.Y. — In any other year, there would be a strong chance linebacker Marquis Spruill would head to Indianapolis to participate in the NFL Scouting Combine. But because a record-number 98 underclassmen declared for this year's NFL Draft, Spruill was one of the bubble invitees who got bumped off the list.

Instead, his chance to work out in front of NFL scouts came a month later, at Wednesday's pro day held at Manley Field House on the Syracuse University campus. Spruill was one of a dozen ex-Syracuse players to participate in the event, attended by scouts representing 29 of 32 NFL teams. By all accounts he tested well after spending part of the offseason training in Florida with a pair of teammates.

"Everything happens for a reason," Spruill said following his workout when asked if he should have been invited to the combine. "What happened happened. I didn't get an invite. Apparently it wasn't even too good of a show anyway, so I'm not sure. I'm just happy I got to do pro day, show everybody my talents today. That's all that matters."

After playing his senior season around 222 pounds, Spruill weighed in at 231 on Wednesday. That may have impacted some of his timed tests, but Spruill sounded pleased with his day. He did not say what he ran in the 40-yard dash, but strength coach Will Hicks said Spruill ran well and jumped well.

"The question," Hicks said, "was was he going to be big enough to be a linebacker at the next level."

That answer likely won't come until the summer, if Spruill gets a camp invite. He said teams have mentioned the possibility of playing as a nickel back, and he participated in one defensive backs drill Wednesday involving backpedaling and hip flexion.

Said Hicks: "Some people are looking at him as a nickel linebacker because of his speed and running on third down. He's going to be a good special teams player. He has played all over the field and is very versatile."

Jerome Smith improves 40 time

Running back Jerome Smith spent the offseason training in Florida, hoping to turn some heads when he lined up for his 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine in February.

Smith did not fare well, posting an official time of 4.84 seconds and finishing 30th among the 33 running backs who ran in Indianapolis.

When Smith returned to Syracuse to continue his training, he scrapped the starting technique he learned in Florida and reverted to the form he used throughout his career at Syracuse.

Jerome Smith reviews his Pro DaySyracuse running back Jerome Smith reviews his NFL Pro Day at Syracuse. Smith was very happy that his results were better than at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis in February.

The results — Hicks and Smith both said he ran in the 4.5s or low 4.6s range — speak for themselves.

"We had to fix his start," Hicks said. "He went to a training facility, and I'm sure those people at those training facilities, they may know a whole lot more than I do. That's what they do for a living. I might have a whole lot more people in the NFL than they do, so if you've got four or five months to change a start, it works. But if you only have four or five weeks you better stick with what got you there."

Smith said he also increased his bench press output from 14 reps to 17 at 225 pounds.

"I just wasn't prepared like I wanted to be," Smith said of his combine performance. "I wasn't as confident as I wanted to be.

"At the combine I did a really bad job at just blocking things out and taking everything for what it was worth. But here, I was here with my friends, my teammates, my brothers. It came out good. We helped each other out."

Keon Lyn limited because of injury

Cornerback Keon Lyn missed most of last season with a fractured kneecap, but he always remained positive on social media, even tweeting about a highly optimistic possible return in the bowl game.

Of course Lyn was held out of the Texas Bowl victory, and he spent some of the offseason training at Bommarito Performance Systems in Miami with Smith and Spruill.

Lyn was hoping to perform drills at about 75 percent speed, but the NFL scouts would not allow anything less than full speed, so Lyn was limited to only working out on the bench press, Hicks said.

"The risk is not worth the reward," Hicks said.

"He's got a positive mindset," said ex-teammate Ri'Shard Anderson, who also worked out at pro day. "It's not like he hasn't had injuries before. Every injury is the same thing. It's just overcoming that depressing mode and you gotta work and get better."

Drew Allen did not work out

Quarterback Drew Allen did not work out at Syracuse on Wednesday. Allen was one of 13 players the school said was scheduled to participate.

Allen worked out at Oklahoma's pro day earlier this month after training this offseason with ex-NFL quarterback Jeff Garcia.

Charley Loeb was the only quarterback to work out for Syracuse.

Follow Nate Mink on Twitter @MinkNate and Google+ or email him at nmink@syracuse.com.